- Police say they have increased patrols in the city to address cases of crime that are on the rise.
- Most of the suspects are young men aged between 20 and 25.
Image: THE STAR
Three suspected thugs were shot dead by police officers after they tried to mug an officer in a city slum.
Police said the officer was among a team of officers who had posed as pedestrians when the drama happened in Kamae area, Kahawa West, Nairobi, at about 5 am on Wednesday.
A gang is said to have been attacking and robbing pedestrians in the area in the morning hours, and police decided to lay an ambush.
Nairobi police boss James Mugera said the officers also posed as pedestrians when they were attacked, prompting a fatal rebuff.
This led to the death of the three suspects and the recovery of a pistol that had three bullets and five mobile phones believed to have been stolen from other pedestrians.
“The suspects did not have identification documents and efforts to identify them are ongoing,” said Mugera.
Police moved the bodies to the mortuary for postmortem and identification.
Locals had complained of persistent attacks in morning hours.
Police say they have intensified operations in the city to tame cases of armed robberies.
Elsewhere, a man was arrested after a three-year-old girl in Dandora area, Nairobi, went missing.
This was after the shoes of the child were found in his house in a search.
The child went missing on Tuesday as she played outside their house and witnesses had said they saw her get into the man’s house.
"A search for the child is ongoing," police said.
And tens of people were left homeless in two separate fire incidents in Nairobi's Embakasi and Mukuru Slums.
The cause of the fires is yet to be known, but police said up to 60 houses were affected.
Those affected have asked for help to reconstruct the structures.
(Edited by M. Asamba)